Inflatable decorative device

ABSTRACT

An inflatable decorative device is provided. The device has a base; an inflatable cover mounted on the base to provide a chamber containing a plurality of lightweight elements, at least a portion of the cover being transparent; a blowing system adapted to inflate the cover, the blowing system being further adapted to circulate the plurality of lightweight elements within the chamber; and a spraying tube fluidly coupled to the blowing system. The spraying tube being adapted to distribute the blowable elements within the chamber and including: an inlet adapted to receive the plurality of blowable elements; and an outlet located above the inlet when the inflatable decorative device is inflated.

This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 10/994,237 filed Nov. 23, 2004, and claims priority to U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 60/741,885, filed Dec. 5, 2005, bothof which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to an inflatable decorative device for exhibition,and more particularly to an inflatable decorative device that shows awhole scene within the decorative device.

DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART

Conventional decorative devices for exhibitions include some inflatablefigures that are made of cloth sewn together to achieve particularfigures (animals, special icons, cartoon characters etc) for enhancingattraction or for advertisement. When the inflatable figures areexhibited, air-injecting devices have to be connected with theinflatable figures so as to make the inflatable figures float or erect.Thereby, the inflatable figures are attractive.

However, the inflatable figures only show particular images respectivelyand are static. Therefore, if a scene having multiple characters isdisplayed in the exhibitions, many inflatable figures corresponding tothe characters have to be prepared to perform the scene. Moreover,because the exhibitions of the inflatable figures are in an openenvironment, some special effects, such as blowing snow, can not bepresent in the open environment.

The present invention has arisen to mitigate or obviate thedisadvantages of the conventional decorative device of the inflatablefigures.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Embodiments of the invention provide an inflatable decorative device.The device has a base; an inflatable cover mounted on the base toprovide a chamber containing a plurality of lightweight elements, atleast a portion of the cover being transparent; a blowing system adaptedto inflate the cover, the blowing system being further adapted tocirculate the plurality of lightweight elements within the chamber; anda spraying tube fluidly coupled to the blowing system. The spraying tubebeing adapted to distribute the blowable elements within the chamber andincluding: an inlet adapted to receive the plurality of blowableelements; and an outlet located above the inlet when the inflatabledecorative device is inflated.

Other embodiments of the invention provide an inflatable decorativedevice having a decorative figure disposed between the base and thecover. The decorative figure can be inflatable or non-inflatable. Thedecorative figure can be, for example, stuffed or rigid.

The inflatable decorative device has the closed chamber provided betweenthe cover and the base, therefore, the blowable elements are blownupward by the blowing device. Moreover, the decorative model inside thecover also plays parts of a scene in the inflatable decorative device.Therefore, the whole scene with the at least one decorative model andthe appearance of falling particles (such as snow or leaves, forexample) is achieved within the decorative device of the invention.

Further benefits and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent after a careful reading of the detailed description withappropriate references to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further advantages and details of the invention follow from theexemplary embodiments and are explained in the following with the aid ofthe Figure, in which:

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional side view of an inflatable decorative devicein accordance with the invention;

FIG. 2 is an cross-sectional side view of the inflatable decorativedevice in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional side view of another embodiment of theinflatable decorative device in accordance with the invention;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional side view of the inflatable decorativedevice in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional side view of yet another embodiment of theinvention; and

FIG. 6 is a side view of an example of a collapsible spraying tube inaccordance with the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

An inflatable decorative device in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention has a base; a cover mounted on the base to provide a chamber,at least a portion of the cover being transparent; a blowing device; andat least one model placed between the base and the cover.

The base optionally comprises a top, a bottom, an inner wall and anouter wall formed between the top and the bottom, wherein the inner walldefines an inner area and the outer wall surrounds the inner wall todefine an intermediate area between the inner wall and the outer wall.The blowing device optionally includes a first injecting tubecommunicating with the intermediate area.

The base can be inflatable or non-inflatable.

In the case of inflatable models, by injecting air into the at least oneinflatable model, all inflatable models are propped up and excess air isallowed to enter the chamber to inflate the cover until the wholeinflatable decorative device is in a pressure balance. The models are atleast a part of the scene within the inflatable decorative device.

In order to create a snowing-like appearance, the inflatable decorativedevice further has a second injecting tube connecting to the firstinjecting tube and communicating with the chamber; a spraying tubealigned with the second tube and communicating with the cover; andplastic particles stacked around the spraying tube near the tube of theblowing device.

By providing the closed chamber between the cover and the base,therefore, the plastic particles are cyclically blown upward by theblowing device. Moreover, a scene with snowing is performed by the atleast one inflatable model and the flying plastic particles inside thedecorative device.

With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, an embodiment of the inflatabledecorative device in accordance with the present invention has a base(10), a blowing device (20), an inflatable cover (30), at least aportion of which is transparent, a spraying pipe (31), at least onemodel (40) (which may or may not be inflatable) and a plurality ofparticles (32).

The base (10) has a top, a bottom (15), an inner wall (12) and an outerwall (11) formed between the top and the bottom (15). The outer wall(11) surrounds the inner wall (12). The outer wall (11) is made ofpermeable material. The inner wall (12) defines an inner area forreceiving the blowing device (20). Moreover, an intermediate area (14)is defined between the inner wall (12) and the outer wall (11). The base(10) further has an opening (13) transversally formed through the innerwall (12) and the outer wall (11) to allow air to enter the inner area.The top of the base (10) is a funnel-shaped top (16) to direct andaccommodate the particles (32). The particles may be made of Styrofoam®(foamed polystyrene), fabric pieces or other materials.

The cover (30) is inflatable and mounted over the top of the base (10).When the cover (30) is completely inflated, a chamber (3) is providedwithin the cover (30). Selectively, the cover (30) can be partiallytransparent in optional modifications. Moreover, parts of the cover (30)can be permeable in case the chamber (3) is over-pressurized.

The blowing device (20) is received inside the inner area within thebase (10) and has a fan (21) with a motor (22), a pipe (33) with afilter (331), and a manifold comprising two injecting tubes (25, 26).The fan (21) is mounted on a rack (24) and has a bottom inlet (23) and aconnector (231). The pipe (33) connects to the bottom inlet (23) of thefan (21) and communicates with the cover (30). The pipe (33) has adistal end and the filter (331) is attached to the distal end. Themanifold has a first injecting tube (25) having one end connected to theconnector (231) on the fan (21) and the other end penetrating the innerwall (12) to communicate with the intermediate area (14). The manifoldhas a second injecting tube (26) having one end connected to the firstinjecting tube (25) near the connector (231) and the other end extendingto the funnel-shaped top (16) of the base (10) to enter the chamber (3).Particularly, the end of the second injecting tube (26) is attached atthe center of the funnel-shaped top (16), i.e. a nadir on thefunnel-shaped top (16).

The at least one model (40) can be made of inflatable and permeablematerial and secured between the base (10) and the cover (30). The atleast one model (40) may be a plurality of inflatable models connectedwith each other to define an airflow route. If inflatable, each model(40) has a connecting pipe (17) communicating to the intermediate area(14). When the fan (21) transmits the air into the intermediate area(14), the air blows into the inflatable models (40) to inflate them.Then, some excess air permeates out from the inflatable models (40) toenter the chamber (3). Alternatively, models (40) can be stuffed orrigid.

The spraying tube (31) is secured on the funnel-shaped top (16) of thebase (10) to extend to the chamber (3) and has an adjacent end, a distalend and multiple fastening strips (312). The multiple fastening strips(312) connect between the adjacent end of the spraying tube (31) and thefunnel-shaped top (16) to keep the spraying tube (31) stable. Thereby,the spraying tube (31) is not directly connected with the secondinjecting tube (26) and a gap is defined between the spraying tube (31)and the second injecting tube (26) to allow particles (32) to fill thegap. The distal end of the spraying tube (31) extends into the chamber(3) to attach to a top of the chamber (3) and has a sprayer (314)mounted at the top of the chamber (3) to spray the particles (32). Thespraying tube (31) partially erects inside one inflatable model (e.g., atree) and is held still when the at least one inflatable model (40)inflates.

When the inflatable decorative device operates, the motor (22) starts todrive the fan (21) to conduct airflow. The airflow is diverged into twoways, one is in the first injecting tube (25) and the other is in thesecond injecting tube (26). The airflow passing the first injecting tube(25) inflates the multiple models (40) (if inflatable). Excess airinside the inflatable models (40) permeates out to enter the chamber (3)so that the cover (30) is gradually inflated. The airflow passing thesecond injecting tube (26) directly injects into the spraying tube (31)and brings the particles (32) to float upward and spray in the chamber(3). After the airflow enters the chamber (3), excess air is extractedby the fan (21) via the pipe (33). Therefore, a scene of fallingparticles is continuously presented in the decorative device of thisinvention.

With further reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, another embodiment of theinflatable decorative device in accordance with the present inventionhas a similar structure with the former one except for the blowingdevice (20′). The blowing device (20′) in the present embodimentcomprises two fans (21 a, 21 b) with two respectively correspondingmotors (22 a, 22 b). The two fans (21 a, 21 b) are respectivelyconnected to a first injecting tube (25 a) and a second injecting tube(26 b). The pipe (33) is connected to the fan (21 b) combined with thesecond injecting tube (26 b).

By providing a closed environment, i.e. the chamber (3), between thecover (30) and the base (10), the particles (32) are cyclically blownupward by the blowing device (20, 20′). Moreover, a scene (such as witha snowing-effect) is performed by the at least one model (40) and theflying particles (32) inside the decorative device. The particles (32)can be pieces of fabric to represent leaves blowing in an autumn scene,or other sheet-like particles.

FIGS. 5 and 6 show an embodiment of the invention in which the sprayingtube (31′) is rigid and is in multiple parts (31 a, 31 b) connected by ahinge (39) so that it can be collapsed for easy storage. Other type ofconnections such as, for example, a sleeve connection, a telescopingconnection or a bayonet connection can be used. The spraying tube (31′)can be, for example, plastic, metal, paper, wood, glass or othermaterial.

The embodiment shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 has a blowing device (20″), apower cord (510) and a plurality of lights (520). The models (40) can beinflated, stuffed or rigid, and can be, for example, fabric, plastic,metal, paper, wood, glass or other material. The particles (32) in thisexample are plastic balls to simulate snow, however, the particle (32)could alternatively be pieces of fabric or other material to simulateleaves or other particulate matter.

The invention is not limited to the above-described exemplaryembodiments.

It will be apparent, based on this disclosure, to one of ordinary skillin the art that many changes and modifications can be made to theinvention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof.

1. An inflatable decorative device comprising: a base; an inflatablecover mounted on the base to provide a chamber containing a plurality oflightweight elements, at least a portion of the cover being transparent;a blowing system adapted to inflate the cover, the blowing system beingfurther adapted to circulate the plurality of lightweight elementswithin the chamber; and a spraying tube fluidly coupled to the blowingsystem, the spraying tube being adapted to distribute the blowableelements within the chamber and including: an inlet adapted to receivethe plurality of blowable elements; and an outlet located above theinlet when the inflatable decorative device is inflated.
 2. Theinflatable decorative device of claim 1, further comprising a decorativefigure disposed between the base and the cover.
 3. The inflatabledecorative device of claim 2, wherein the decorative figure isnon-inflatable.
 4. The inflatable decorative device of claim 3, whereinthe decorative figure is stuffed.
 5. The inflatable decorative device ofclaim 3, wherein the decorative figure is rigid.
 6. The inflatabledecorative device of claim 3, wherein the decorative figure is aplurality of decorative figures.
 7. The inflatable decorative device ofclaim 3, wherein the inlet of the spraying tube communicates with thechamber and the outlet of the spraying tube is located above thedecorative figure when the inflatable decorative device is inflated. 8.The inflatable decorative device of claim 3, wherein the base is adaptedto channel air from the blowing system to the cover.
 9. The inflatabledecorative device of claim 3, wherein the blowing system comprises atleast one blowing device.
 10. The inflatable decorative device of claim9, wherein the at least one blowing device includes a fan having amotor.
 11. The inflatable decorative device of claim 10, wherein the atleast one blowing device includes a second fan having a second motor.12. The inflatable decorative device of claim 9, the blowing systemfurther comprising a pipe connected to an inlet of the at least oneblowing device and communicating with the chamber, a distal end of thepipe having a filter attached thereto.
 13. The inflatable decorativedevice of claim 3, wherein the blowable elements are adapted to simulatesnow.
 14. The inflatable decorative device of claim 3, wherein theblowable elements are made from foamed polystyrene.
 15. The inflatabledecorative device of claim 3, wherein the blowable elements are piecesof fabric.
 16. The inflatable decorative device of claim 3, wherein thespraying tube is a rigid spraying tube that is collapsible.
 17. Theinflatable decorative device of claim 16, wherein the spraying tube iscollapsible by way of a hinge between rigid spraying tube portions. 18.The inflatable decorative device of claim 1, wherein the spraying tubeis a rigid spraying tube that is collapsible.
 19. The inflatabledecorative device of claim 18, wherein the spraying tube is collapsibleby way of a hinge between rigid spraying tube portions.
 20. Theinflatable decorative device of claim 1, wherein the blowable elementsare pieces of fabric.
 21. An inflatable decorative device comprising: abase; an inflatable cover mounted on the base to provide a chambercontaining a plurality of lightweight elements, at least a portion ofthe cover being transparent; and a blowing system comprising a pluralityof blowing devices fluidly coupled to the chamber of the inflatablecover, a first one of the plurality of blowing devices being adapted tomove the plurality of lightweight elements within the chamber by onlyrecirculating air within the inflatable cover, and a second one of theplurality of blowing devices being adapted to introduce air from outsidethe inflatable decorative device into the inflatable cover.
 22. Theinflatable decorative device of claim 21, wherein the blowable elementsare pieces of fabric.
 23. The inflatable decorative device of claim 21,further comprising a decorative figure disposed between the base and thecover.
 24. The inflatable decorative device of claim 23, wherein thedecorative figure is non-inflatable.
 25. The inflatable decorativedevice of claim 24, wherein the decorative figure is stuffed.
 26. Theinflatable decorative device of claim 24, wherein the decorative figureis rigid.